The Eternity of Time
by RefreshinglyNEW
Summary: It's the Marauders Seventh and final year at Hogwarts and James Potter hopes to convince Lily Evans to fall for him before the yearend. The only issue is that mischief can never be managed for the Marauders for long and one small obscure timeturner throws the Marauders and Lily from the past and into the future of Harry Potter's first year.
1. Superseding Time

_**THE ETERNITY of TIME**_

**Chapter One** "_Superseding Time_"

DISCLAIMER: The characters and story plot of the Harry Potter franchise do NOT belong to me, I am just one of the many privileged enough to write on J.K Rowling's marvellous novel series.

* * *

In the highland hills of Scotland, standing tall with all it's tower peaks and old stone walls rested Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The pale lit moon of the night sky casting the ancient castles large, magnificent shadow across the rolling slopes of green grass. A cool breeze made the trees of the Forbidden forest sway as if in a coordinated dance and although most of the castle seemed to be in a blackout state, there was however a soft amber glow shining through the arched windows of the common room high up in Gryffindor Tower.

Inside the tower, while most students of Gryffindor House were off to sleep in their dormitories a few stragglers in their Seventh Year remained awake. Sitting comfortably nestled on one end of a plush sofa in front of the common room fireplace with a bottle of butterbeer held carelessly in his hand, James Potter, the newly declared Head Boy of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry stared with utter boredom into the flickering flames. With the top few buttons of his dress shirt undone and his Gryffindor tie pulled loose, James swirled the sweet tasting liquid in the bottle around a few times before bring it to his lips for a few thrown back gulps.

At the opposite end of the tacky coloured plush sofa sat Remus Lupin, an advanced transfiguration textbook sprawled open on his lap. His gentle eyes flicking from left to right as he read, fully enrapt and unaware of his surroundings.

Sitting in front of Lupin with his legs crisscrossed was the small and chubby Peter Pettigrew, a pile of opened chocolate frog packages littered in a half circle around him while a neat stack of wizard cards neatly towered in front of him, his small sausage likes fingers fumbling to open yet another chocolate frog.

"How many is that you've eaten now, Pete'?" James asked, oddly amused by the amount of sweets his friend was able to consume at one given time.

"Fourteen, no fifteen!" replied Peter, his head cocked over his shoulder to look at James, his teeth and lips darkly stained with melted chocolate. "Almost set a new record for myself."

James snorted while shaking his head. "To be honest, I'm not actually sure if that's even a record you should want to be breaking, isn't the right Moony?"

"Hmm?" mumbled Remus absently, his eyes not once lifting from his book.

"Merlin, is it so hard to stop reading for one bloody minute and talk?" James questioned exasperated.

Slowly dragging his eyes from his textbook, Remus looked to James and then down to Peter. "You've got a little something on your face."

"Where?" asked Peter as be brought the sleeve of his Gryffindor jumper up to his mouth.

"Well your... Face." Remus answered, unsure of where to quite begin pointing out Pettigrew's mess.

"Not helpful," Peter replied, his words muffled as he wiped and scrubbed at his face with his sleeve.

Chuckling to himself, James downed his butterbeer and looked to the old muggle wristwatch strapped to his wrist. "Ah, thank goodness another ten minutes and Padfoot will be free from Filch and his detention and then there may actually be some decent banter tonight."

"Not enjoying our company?" Remus asked as he placed a tattered looking ribbon in between the two pages of his textbook and closed it.

"It's not that I'm not enjoying it, it's just well you're reading and I've been watching Peter stuff his face with Chocolate Frogs for the last hour, now does that sound exactly thrilling?" James countered.

Shrugging his shoulders as a tiny smile twitched at one end of his mouth, Remus gave his old friend a nod to show he could understand James' boredom. "Might I suggest you and Lily talk about your duties? Being that Dumbledore saw you both fit to be Head Boy and Girl this year."

"You say that like it's simple to just go over and strike up a lengthy conversation with Evans," James said, he looked past Remus to where Lily Evans sat doing some homework a small smile gracing his face as he watched her brush a few strands of auburn hair out of her eyes and behind her ear. "You know, I worked really hard last year to turn my reputation around and she's still not giving me the time of day to try and show her that I've changed."

"It's only the first week of the semester, Prongs. We've the entire year still left for you to try and swoop her off her feet." pointed out Remus.

"That's just it, all I have is this year," James grumbled, the ever looming realization that graduation was to come at the end of this year wasn't a comforting thought. "Once we graduate this could be the last time I ever see her, who knows what she'll go off and do after school."

"I'm quite certain she won't be going into hiding once we graduate and that you will have more than likely several more chances in which to ask Lily out." Remus said calmly.

"You're right, what am I worried about," James replied, he kicked his legs out and slouched down in relaxation as Remus' words put him at ease. "You know, Evans has bound to come around this year. I think it's time I make my vow."

Remus rolled his eyes. "James, you really don't have to do that..."

"Don't stop me, Remus. It has to be said," James stated, he took a deep breath and placed a hand over his heart as if making a pledge. "I vow to make Lily Evans my girlfriend before the end of the year!"

"Didn't you make that vow last year?" questioned Peter, cocking a brushy eyebrow up at James.

"And the year and the year before that?" added a grinning Sirius Black as he came up behind the sofa James and Remus sat on. "If I were you mate, I'd move on before you've wasted all your time here on Evans. There's plenty of witches in the wizarding world you know."

"I'm not wasting time, there's just something about her. And very funny but I swear this is going to be the year, it just has to be," James said as he placed his empty bottle on the edge of a nearby table. Turning with earnest excitement to Sirius he looked his friend over. "Now come on then, where is it?"

Sirius' grin dropped from his face as he ran a hand through his dark curly locks. "Well there's been a bit of a hiccup in our plan."

James sighed. "A _hiccup?_"

"I couldn't find the ruddy map anywhere in Filch's office, I don't know where the old gargoyle has it stored away but I didn't see it," Sirius answered as he stepped up and over the back of the sofa to drop into the vacant seat in between Remus and James. "On the bright side, the git thinks it's just a piece of spare parchment, he doesn't know what it really is _and_ I was able to snatch something else from his office in the maps stead."

"Snatch something else? Please tell me you didn't take one of Filch's cats Sirius." Remus groaned, reaching over and pulling open Sirius' robe to see if a cat was hidden underneath.

Pushing Remus' hand away with a snort, Sirius dug into the pocket of his trousers and pulled out an oddly shaped object wrapped in old weathered parchment and tied securely with frayed twine. "I did not grab one of Filch's cats thank you very much Moony, I did however manage to swipe this little beauty here."

"What is it?" asked Peter as he clumsily shifted on to his knees and shuffled closer to his mates.

"It's a... Well, it's uh... Honestly, I have no idea what it is." Sirius said as he twisted and turned the small package between his fingers.

"Perfect, we've still lost the map and in exchange we're now the proud procurers of an unknown object from Filch's office. Please don't let it be some old furball he's kept wrapped up." James drawled with sarcasm.

Sirius chuckled as he pulled the twine undone. "Anyone fancy putting a wager down on what it is before I take off the wrapping?"

"Two knuts says it's some old chewed up gum that was stuck under a desk that Filch scrapped off and is keeping as a Christmas gift for himself." James proposed.

"Okay, we've got two knuts for old chewed up gum, any other takers?" Sirius ventured out, his eyes shifting from Peter and Remus.

"I'll bet a knut it's something from potions." Peter answered as he dug a hand in his trousers and pulled out a coin for Sirius to take.

"You've got to be more specific than that, Peter." Sirius said as he grabbed the coin from the stout teens chubby fingers.

"Fine, uh... Remus, what's that rock called that's used in love potions and stuff?" Peter asked, his beady eyes locked on Lupin.

"You mean a moonstone."

"There we go, I bet a knut it's a moonstone!" Peter announced.

"Yeah, I heard Moony," Sirius said, he shook his head at Peter. "What about you, Remus, what's your bet?"

"I'm not getting involved with this one." refused Remus.

"Fine, have it your way. But, before I start the grand reveal, James you've lost already since this feels way to hard to be some old gum," Sirius announced, slowly peeling back the old weathered parchment that was crumpled around the unknown object, suspense took hold of the Marauders. "And it is a..."

"Hourglass?" chorused the four teens in unison disappointment.

Squinting his eyes to examine it closer, Sirius grumbled a few incoherent curses under his breath.

"Could it be a timeturner?" ventured a guess from James.

"A timeturner doesn't have that many turning rings around it," pointed out a feminine voice from behind that made all the occupants on the sofa jump.

"Lily?!" James exclaimed, he stood from the couch and immediately buttoned up the top buttons of his dress shirt as if it would make him appear more presentable.

"Save it Potter," Lily asked, her inquisitive stare made Sirius grin broadly. "Where did you get that, Black?"

"Wouldn't you like to know, unfortunately for you this little object is for Marauder eyes only." Sirius explained just as Lily reached out like she had the hands of a seeker and grabbed the object from his grasp.

"Oi! That's mine!" Sirius shouted, he fumbled about the sofa before managing to stand up on the middle cushion so he towered over the petite frame of Lily Evans. "Give that back!"

"Tell me where you got this or as Head Girl I'll have no other option but to hand it over to Professor McGonagall." Lily retorted firmly, the hourglass object held behind her back far from Sirius Black's reach.

"Come on now Evans, hand it back to Sirius. You can't just go taking other students property." James interjected tentatively, he had worked so hard over the last year he wasn't looking to get into a row and lose all the progress he'd made with Lily.

Lily looked at James disbelievingly. "Do you truly expect me to believe that this is Black's personal property?"

James hesitated and he knew at once the hesitation had cost him.

"That's what I thought," Lily said.

"Oh give up the goody two shoes act already," Sirius snapped as he jumped down off the back of the sofa so he stood toe to toe with the Head Girl of Hogwarts, his hand held open in front of him. "Hand it over."

Chin held high, Lily shook her head with firm determination. However unbeknownst to her, Peter Pettigrew had curled himself into a ball in front of the sofa just out of her sight and after checking to make sure no one was watching, he transformed himself into his animagus form.

Shrinking down into a fat, mousy brown coloured rat, Peter scurried underneath the sofa and out the back, brushing up against Sirius' ankle as he past by his friend.

Feeling something brush his foot, Sirius' glanced down to see the all to familiar plump rat that was Peter run right through the gap of space in-between Lily's feet. "Oh naive Evans, you should have just handed it over."

"Is that a threat, Black?" Lily countered, her eyes narrowing at the pompous boy before her.

Ensuring the common room was in fact just as empty as it had been before their ongoing dispute, Peter phased back into his human form just behind Lily, his sausage likes fingers prying the hourglass object from Lily's one hand with ease.

Yelping at the unexpected touch, Lily spun around to find a snickering Peter Pettigrew now in hold of Black's mysterious object. "Peter! But how... You were just..."

"He was just what? Have you gone barmy, Evans?" teased Sirius, a smirk stretched across his handsome face.

Ignoring Sirius, Lily pointed a finger at Pettigrew. "If you're not looking to get detention along with Black, I suggest you turn that back over to me, Peter."

Seemingly torn for just a split second of whether or not to hand the object over, Peter lobbed the item over Lily's head in hopes for Sirius to catch, however the object landed in the unsuspecting hands of Remus Lupin.

There was a brief moment of silence in which Remus looked from James, to Sirius, to Lily and then to Peter. Heaving out a huff, Remus knew all to well what was coming and as expected all four other occupants of the Gryffindor common room lunged towards him from all directions. Tumbling off the sofa in a mess of tangled limbs, shouting and cursing, the Marauders and Lily wrestled amongst one another for hold of the hourglass, with robes and bodies rolling all about the place in such a flurry it wasn't uncommon at one point or another for some of the Marauders to be wrestling one another.

"ENOUGH!" roared Remus when he finally managed to poke his head out of the ensuing wrestling match from the very bottom.

The flailing arms and legs came to a stop as the other participants of the common room brawl focused on Remus, the only one of the Marauder's who no one had ever heard raise his voice to that decibel before.

"Are we not in our Seventh Year, can we not solve this rationally by using reason?" Remus asked aloud to them all, he breathed heavily under all their combined weight. Hands clenching the hourglass protectively to his chest with what felt like at least one hand of every other person within the piles on top of his own.

"Sorry Moony, but finders keepers and Evans didn't find it," Sirius mumbled, his face mushed up against either James or Peter's shoulder, he couldn't tell.

On top of the pile, Lily's eyes glared daggers down on Sirius Black. Her hair a tousled mess and her cheeks flushed red. "Hah! So you admit it's not yours then?!"

Sirius' only response was to pull a face.

Shoving an elbow from his side, James squirmed within the pile, all the while keeping his hand on top of all the others that had been fumbling to get a hold of the hourglass. "How about we all climb off of Remus before we squish him and talk this out?"

"I would if Black was capable of having a conversation and not acting like a first year that will just grab the hourglass and run off the moment we get up," Lily snapped, primarily from all the built up frustration of the situation. "You're Head Boy now, Potter how long are you going to indulge in Black's terrible ideas that get you into trouble and cost us all House points?"

"Did you ever think that maybe the reason we all lose House points is because you run off and tattle on him and us to the nearest Professor you can find every chance you get." James defended.

"I do not tattle, I was a prefect and now I'm Head Girl, that's my duty!" Lily retorted, her hand unknowingly underneaths James as they all held fast to the hourglass. "Merlin, I can't wait for the future day when I no longer have to argue and deal with the likes of you and your friends!"

James felt a prickle of pain in stomach at her words until he felt a strange tingling sensation near the tip of his fingers on the hand that overlay the rest of everyone else. "Does anybody else feel that in their fingers?"

"It's moving!" exclaimed Remus in surprise as the turning rings that surrounded the hourglass began to spin within his palms.

"What's moving?" squeaked Peter, the tingling sensation that been in his fingers had strangely turned into a tugging feeling as if someone was pulling on his hand.

"The hourglass, it's rings are turning!" shouted Remus as a bright light began shining through the cracks of space in their over laying hands.

In the blink of an eye the five Gryffindor students that had been sprawled out on top of one another vanished in a flash of white light leaving nothing more behind than the flicker of flames in the common room fireplace.

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A/N: Hello there! For anyone who has read any of my other work, you may know I haven't started a new story in quite some time, however I felt the need to start something else to occupy my time and switch on to when I have writers block on my other fic's. I've always wanted to do a timeturner fic and I hope this goes well. Thank you everyone for checking this story out and reading, feel free to leave a review and until next time. Farewell!


	2. The Relevance of Today

_**THE ETERNITY of TIME**_

**Chapter Two** "_The Relevance of Today_"

DISCLAIMER: The characters and story plot of the Harry Potter franchise do NOT belong to me, I am just one of the many privileged enough to write on J.K Rowling's marvellous novel series.

* * *

"My eyes, I can't see!" cried Peter as he rolled back and forth on the ground, after the flash of white light the stack of piled Gryffindor's had separated to different spots among the floor to better nurse the residual effects to their vision.

"Calm down, Pete', it'll go away shortly. Haven't you ever looked at the sun before?" said Remus as he climbed to his feet and stumbled about with his hands stretched out before him, in one hand he held the hourglass.

"Who stares at the sun long enough to have their vision go this bad?" questioned James sarcastically, laying on his back he blinked several times as his focus began to adjust back to the dimly lit common room. "Ah, wait it's finally settling down."

Sirius sat up and rubbed furiously at his eyes. "Blimey that was bright, makes the Lumos charm seem like a candle stick."

"It made the sun look like a candle stick you mean," James corrected, looking around his eyes stopped on Lily as she sat rubbing at her temples as if trying to quell a headache. "You alright, Evans?"

"You mean other than getting tangled up in your lots affair and having my eyes seared by light, just peachy." Lily grumbled.

Sirius chuckled. "You do realize you brought this on yourself by wanting to take away the hourglass, right?"

"Please don't start, Sirius. At this point I'm ready to forget all about your hourglass just so I can go up to bed." Lily replied tiredly.

Watching Lily shift to get up, James hurried over to offer his arm in assistance. "Here let me help. It's the least I can do for having you practically blinded."

Looking to James and then his hand, Lily sighed but took the offered arm. "Thank you."

Fighting the urge to beam with a smile as she grabbed hold of his arm, James played it off as cool and collected as he could. "No trouble at all."

"Um, guys?" Peter asked slowly, his head half cocked to the side as he looked puzzlingly to the fireplace that just minutes ago was raging with flames but now was out without a single amber still alight. "Did somebody put out the fire?"

"What's that?" Remus asked as he walked back over towards the fireplace once regaining his sight. His focus unlike Peter's however turned to the sofa they had just been sitting on, the tacky plush sofa that had once been there was now replaced with a more elegant looking sofa of crimson red. "What happened to the sofa?"

Brows arching up as he looked at the sofa, Sirius scratched the top of his head, a look of bemusement on his face. "I could swear it was just there, maybe the light from the hourglass changed it?"

"The light changed it?" questioned James with a grin, his tone of voice clearly shooting down what he thought was Sirius' lamely proposed hypothesis.

"Do you have a better explanation?" Sirius shot back.

"Give me a minute to think and I probably will," James said, he stared long and hard at the sofa but couldn't come up with anything plausible that made sense. "I've got nothing."

Sirius smirked, giving a pointed look to James as if to say 'I told you so'.

"The sofas not the only thing that's changed, someone's rearranged all the tables and chairs." Remus announced, he looked about the dark common room and then down to the hourglass in his hand. Could it possibly have done this?

"The staircases move, maybe the furniture does as well?" guessed Peter lamely.

"The staircases move in-front of you, a whole room of furniture doesn't simply get rearranged with people in the room not taking notice," Lily stated, her head snapped towards the common room entryway as the fat ladies portrait opened up.

Stepping inside, her silhouette all that was visible, Minerva McGonagall wasn't the least bit pleased to see a group of her students awake past curfew. Striding across the room with a gracefully bounce to her step, she drew her wand and cast the '_Lumos_' charm to provide safe passage through the scattered common room tables.

"Professor?" James said alarmed at being caught awake at whatever untimely hour it was, it normally would have never happened if they still had the map.

"I knew it was just a matter of time before I caught one of my students breaking curfew this year, I am quite disappointed that it's happened this early on," McGonagall said, as she grew closer the light from her wand illuminated the faces of the five students. "By Godric Gryffindor... It can't be."

Lily having never served detention or broken a single Hogwarts rule in all her years while attending the institute immediately applied McGonagall's surprise towards finding her awake along with the Marauder's. "I'm sorry Professor McGonagall, I know you expect better than this from a Head Girl, if it amounts to anything, I didn't intend to be up this late or out my dorm."

"Well that's it for us lads, this is where Evans spills everything about the hourglass," Sirius whispered, he stuffed his hands into the pockets of his trousers as he observed McGonagall, waiting for his Head of House to begin her reprehensive lecture.

To the dismay of the Marauder's and even Lily Evans, the lecture they were so positively certain was going to transpire, never did. McGonagall continued to stand where she did, a look of shock etched onto her face if see had turned to stone.

"What's happening? Is this some new sort of way of making us feel guilty?" James wondered, fidgeting under her fixated gaze.

Breaking from her stupor, McGonagall cleared her throat and took an uneasy step back. "James... Lily? Oh my, Peter is that you?"

The three in question shared a look just before Lily placed a gentle step towards the Gryffindor Head of House. "Are you alright, Professor?"

"What are you doing here, no... How are you here?" McGonagall questioned, doing her best to keep her voice from wavering with a mixture of emotion threatening to erupt at any given moment.

"Erm, we've been coming here every year for the past six years, do you have a fever Professor? Should we get Madam Pomfrey?" Remus enquired in concern, he strolled around the sofa from the fireplace to get a better view of McGonagall's condition.

Squinting his eyes, Remus was perplexed to take notice of the increased crinkles of age upon McGonagall's face. She didn't appear to have severely aged, yet the crowsfeet near the edge of her eyes were more pronounced and her hair had accumulated more strands of grey. How was it she seemed so different since having just seen her that very morning while attending her class.

"No, I am quite fine Mr. Lupin," answered McGonagall, her focus locked on the obscure looking object in the boy's hand, an object that had very eery similarities to that of a timeturner. "What's that you have in your hand?"

"Pardon Professor?" Remus asked, feigning a lack of attention he tried to close his hand more tightly around the hourglass, shielding it from her line of sight.

"Contrary to what you may believe Mr. Lupin, you do not possess the talent of acting to be able to play dumb with me, now what is that you're trying to hide?" McGonagall said, she directed the tip of her wand to Remus' clenched hand to emphasize her question.

Slowly bringing his hand out in front of him, Remus begrudgingly opened his fingers so the hourglass sat in his palm.

"Just as I feared," McGonagall said softly, approaching Remus she reached out and took the hourglass from his hand.

"Um, Professor?" Sirius interjected in an attempt to try and save the object from being taken away. "That's actually mine, it's a Black family heirloom. It helps me keep the time of day."

"I suggest you go out and buy a pocketwatch, Mr. Black, I assure you it would be much better suited than using this," McGonagall curtly replied, if she had less composure than she did she may have cursed the boy with a hex for his betrayal to Lily and James Potter.

Sirius nodded while taking a step back. "You're absolutely correct, my mistake."

McGonagall's lips thinned into a line before turning to address them as a whole. "You will all wait right here in the common room while I go and speak with the Headmaster about this."

James blanched. "Is that necessary, I mean we're only a little over curfew after all. Wouldn't a detention suffice as punishment?"

"He makes a valid point, Professor, we're in trouble because we're awake, shouldn't we be going to bed not staying up longer?" Sirius added.

"I believe I made myself clear, you will all wait here until I return, is that understood?" McGonagall snapped shortly.

"Perfectly clear, Professor. I'll make sure no one leaves the common room." promised Lily, hoping dearly that Potter and Black didn't antagonize the grim looking Head of House any further.

"Thank you, Mrs. Pott- Miss. Evans." McGonagall said, catching herself in time that it didn't draw to much attention.

Lily put a light smile on, pleased to know that even though she was in trouble at least it didn't ruin her repore with McGonagall.

"I won't be long." announced McGonagall, and with that she swept from the Gryffindor common room.

Travelling through the empty corridors of the school, McGonagall's mind raced with an abundant amount of thoughts. The main thought at the forefront of her mind of this troublesome predicament was that it would only lead to a terrible outcome, that was of course if it wasn't a dream as she dearly hoped it to be.

Although McGonagall was also quite panicked about the situation she come upon, she knew once she spoke to Albus Dumbledore it would be resolved without incident, again she hoped. If the Potter's or any of the teens learned of their future, chaos would ensue, and if they were to return to their time the present could be gravely altered with devastating consequences. Specifically thinking about Harry Potter's birth and his victory over he-who-must-not-be-named.

So caught up in her thoughts, McGonagall nearly ran straight into the gargoyle that guarded entry into Dumbledore's Office. Checking over her shoulder to make sure no one was listening in, McGonagall straightened her robes and looked into the statue's stoney eyes.

"_Pickled Prunes_," McGonagall said in a low tone, the Gargoyle statue in return slid to the side just in time to let her step onto the revolving circular staircase.

"Good evening, Minerva," greeted Albus Dumbledore as McGonagall stepped into the old Headmaster's office. "Couldn't sleep?"

Shaking her head, McGonagall approached Dumbledore where he sat behind his desk. "I'm afraid that is not the issue, Albus... I don't know where to begin."

"I've always found that right at the beginning is the best place to start, Minerva." Dumbledore encouraged, his placed a tip of his finger to the bridge of his half-moon spectacles and pushed them up his crooked nose.

McGonagall inhaled deeply and fell into the open seat across from the Headmaster. "Well, I was making my rounds through the castle as you know I do, when I decided to make a stop in my House's common room... It's what I found inside, Albus... I... It's hard to make sense of."

"Take your time, I am more than willing to help you make sense of which you cannot." Albus replied.

McGonagall searched for words but found the hourglass she had confiscated from Remus Lupin would assist in telling her tale in more ways than her trying to explain. Placing it on the table, she leaned back in her chair. "I think it's some sort of timeturner, Albus."

Picking the object up and inspecting it closely in the light of the candle on his desk, Albus Dumbledore only shifted his gaze to McGonagall when the object proposed an obvious question. "I suspect this didn't turn up in the Gryffindor common room by itself, did it?"

"No it did not," McGonagall answered, she linked her hands on top of her lap. "It came in the company of Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Sirius Black, and Harry Potter's parents."

"I see," Albus murmured, he turned back to the hourglass while he continued to speak. "Being that they're all together, I assume they've arrived at a young age?"

"Judging on their appearance, I'd place them in either their Sixth or Seventh Year." supplied McGonagall, surprised at how well he was taking the news then again Albus Dumbledore never did seem to panic even under the worst circumstances.

"How peculiar," Dumbledore announced, he placed the timeturner down on his desk and met McGonagall's gaze. "I must admit I have come across many things in my life, yet I have never come across a timeturner with the ability to transport not just one, but five people safely over the span of a decade."

"You haven't?" McGonagall repeated, she stared at him for a long while until she overcame her disbelief. "What do we do, Albus, we must send them back to their time immediately."

"Why should we be in such haste to do so?"

McGonagall lurched forward in her chair, her hands gripping the edge of the Headmaster's desk. "Because of the repercussions our world will endure from them learning of their futures when and if they return to the past!"

"I assure you, Minerva, no harm to the current state of the world will happen as a result of them being here," Dumbledore assured.

"How can you be so certain, you yourself just said you've never seen a timeturner able to transport an individual this far in time." protested McGonagall.

"That is true, there is one thing that I do know of time and that is that time like the universe, time is infinite. There is no ending to time, an individual's time may end, a star may even end, but time will never end," Dumbledore explained, his hand stroking the length of his grey beard speckled with hairs of white. "Meaning, Minerva, that even though them being here may come as a startle to us, it was bound to happen, there is no changing time as it is inevitable to change what's always been, what always will be."

McGonagall's face showed only confusion. "I'm sorry, Albus, I don't follow."

"To simplify it, I mean to say they've come here likely return to their time and present the same outcome we know them to." Dumbledore divulged.

"Just so we're clear, Albus, what you're saying is that no matter what happens while they're here it's impossible to change the fact that Lily and James Potter will die?" McGonagall said slowly, doing her best to understand what Dumbledore was saying.

|Precisely," Dumbledore replied, his tone softening to a sadder tone. "We are trapped in just another loop of time's eternity, while we may think we control our own destiny's, it's already been paved in the stone, we have no option, we have no ability to change it."

"And what happens if they learn of their past, what happens if they learn of Black's betrayal?" McGonagall enquired.

"I dare say that most students here are far to young to remember Sirius Black and his betrayal to the Potter's," Dumbledore answered. "I think that may be the least of our worries."

"You mention the students as though they will be around them," McGonagall pointed out, her cat like eyes grew wide when she realized the Headmaster didn't plan to isolate them from the present student body. "You aren't honestly thinking of allowing them attend class while here at this time?"

"They are after all still students of this institute, perhaps not students of this time, but they are students none the less." Dumbledore replied.

"Students they are, but they are students at a time when Lily and James Potter's son is attending Hogwarts as well, encase you've forgotten Harry Potter has begun his first year."

"We are also the current keepers of the Philosopher Stone, Minerva, that doesn't mean we would keep Nicolas Flamel from his stone if he should wish to see it," Dumbledore replied, getting to his feet he flashed a small smile to the transfiguration professor. "I can only tell them to use discretion, I can not forbid them from interacting with other students, including young Mr. Potter."

McGonagall sat back in her chair, resigned to the fact the Headmaster fully planned to indulge the time travelling students.

Strolling around his desk, Dumbledore gestured for her to stand. "If I'm not mistaken, I believe we have some guests to speak with."

McGonagall let her head fall with a nod, with shaky hands on the arm rests of the chair she got up to stand at Dumbledore's side. "By all means, after you Headmaster."

* * *

A/N: Well I'm diving right into it, after this chapter let the fun times roll I suppose lol. As well thank you to all three very kind reviewers of the first chapter thus far, I am glad you all enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it. I hope to get the next chapter up as soon as possible. Enjoy the chapter, thank you for reading and please like a review if you have the time. Goodbye until next time! XD


	3. Inquiring the Future

**THE ETERNITY of TIME**

**Chapter Three **"Inquiring the Future"

DISCLAIMER: The characters and story plot of the Harry Potter franchise do NOT belong to me, I am just one of the many privileged enough to write on J.K Rowling's marvelous novel series.

* * *

After getting the five students to sit down among a few assembled common room chairs, McGonagall stood just behind Dumbledore who had taken a seat across from the five time travelers. His light blue eyes twinkling as they passed over the youthful faces before him.

"Thank you all for staying awake, I know it's quite late and you all have classes tomorrow so I shall keep this as brief as possible," Dumbledore began, his voice light and chipper. "Now while I could attempt to go into some overly complicated explanation to come up with why you are all here, alas I can not as I myself do not yet fully comprehend the situation we find ourselves in tonight."

"And what situation is that, sir?" asked Remus hesitantly, preparing himself for detention.

"Simply put, Mr. Lupin, you and your friends here are all from a different period of time, the object you had upon your arrival is in fact a timeturner or a very close relative to the timeturner and acted as the host to bring you all here to the present time." Dumbledore answered gently.

"Is this for real?" Sirius asked skeptically, he looked at the dumbfounded expressions on his mates faces and he knew then they at least seemed to believe the Headmaster.

"This is regrettably very real, Mr. Black." Dumbledore said gravely.

"But that can't be, it has one to many turning rings to be a timeturner!" Lily blurted out, her emerald green eyes wide and full of disbelief.

"That's because as Headmaster Dumbledore said it is not some ordinary timeturner, Miss. Evans, now if you'll please refrain from anymore outbursts until the Headmaster is finished," McGonagall replied, using the young girls maiden name proficiently this time without muddying it up with Potter's.

"Of course my apologies, I'm sorry for interrupting, Headmaster." Lily immediately back peddled.

"It's quite alright, my dear," assured Dumbledore, he cleared his throat and held up the hourglass timeturner that had brought them in his hand. "As I'm certain you're all aware of the troubles a situation like this presents I find it best we return you back to your time period as quickly as possible. If one of you would be so kind as to take this timeturner from me."

With a couple of hesitant steps, James Potter approached the old Headmaster and took the timeturner in his hand. "Sorry sir, but this is all so... Well it's hard to wrap my head around."

"The sooner you return to your time, the sooner you may not have to try and '_wrap your head around_' it at all." Dumbledore commented, bringing his hand up to James' he closed the younger wizards fingers around the timeturner.

"How far exactly have we gone into the future, Sir?" James asked, his eyes locked on his hand with the timeturner.

"Does it make any difference to know, why present yourself with temptation my dear boy," Dumbledore answered, he took his hand from James' and directed the young man to the other four who sat behind him. "Take them home, Mr. Potter."

James looked troubled when faced with the task given to him by the Headmaster, spraining his neck to look over his shoulder at the others, he let a shaky breath escape his lungs. "Do any of you know how to use this bloody thing?"

The other four time travellers shook their heads one by one to show they hadn't any inkling of an idea, Remus however did stand up and walked over to James' side.

"I don't know how to use it per-say, but I remember we were all holding it before the light went off and blinded us... Maybe we all just have to hold it again and it'll send us back?" Remus suggested.

"It's better than anything I could have probably come up with," James said, turning to others he waved them over. "Everybody place your hand on mine."

Uneasily they all began to pile their hands on top of James', when all of their hands were in, they closed their eyes and waited for the bright white light to takeover. The light didn't come though, and for several minutes they stood in awkward silence with their hands over top of each others.

"My fingers aren't tingling," noted Peter, the palm of his hand began to perspire over Sirius' who in return yanked his hand out from under the pile to wipe it off on his robes.

"Disgusting," Sirius mumbled under his breath, he tilted his head up to view Dumbledore and McGonagall. "I don't think we're doing something right."

Dumbledore brought his hand to his chin so it could run the length of his beard. "And this is exactly as you all were before the timeturner brought you here?"

"Things were a bit more frantic than they are now if that's got something to do with it," James answered while tugging his hand free from the pile as well.

"I cannot see how that would be related, then again I am no expert in regards to this type of magic," Dumbledore said, using the armrests of his seat he got to his feet and stepped forward to where James stood with the timeturner. "I may need to study this before we have any success in returning you back to your time."

"Meaning we won't be going back now?" Remus asked.

"Without any knowledge as to how, it would seem you five will be our guests for the unforeseeable future," Dumbledore declared, he held his hand out to James with a small smile. "I am certain you all will show some level of restraint about this whole situation when conversing with those of this time, I must say being discreet will be much easier for everyone involved."

"We'll be attending class still?" questioned Lily as James handed the timeturner back over to Dumbledore.

"Yes, you all will still attend your classes, mind you your timetable's are probably not as accurate since the passing of time between now and your school years. Professor McGonagall and I discussed this prior to meeting with you all on the off chance we were unable to send you back." Dumbledore replied, he pocketed the time turner in the recess of his star speckled burgundy robes.

"Sorry Headmaster, but what is it we tell other students who ask about us, such as where we came from and that?" Remus asked, he returned to chair he had been sitting in before, dropping tiredly into it.

McGonagall like everyone else within the confines of the Gryffindor common room looked to Dumbledore in utter bewilderment at how the old Headmaster planned to explain their sudden arrival.

"It's a pleasure to see you're still as keen on details as I remember you to be, Mr. Lupin," Dumbledore said, a gentle smile breaking out onto his wrinkled face. "You five will pose as hopeful Ministry of Magic applicants, but due to insufficient grades you have been requested by the Ministry to retake your N.E.W.T.S."

"You want us to pretend to be school dropouts?" Lily groaned, suddenly she felt as though she needed to take a seat as Remus had.

"I would think you'd be happy at least to still be attending class, Miss. Evans." McGonagall commented.

"I am... It's just the term dropout and my name never seemed like it would be in the same sentence... Ever." Lily mumbled.

"Then if it's any comfort, we do not expect you all to be running about the castle with your names as they are. Miss. Evans, you will be going by the name Dorothy Milburn," McGonagall announced as Sirius immediately raised a hand. "What is it, Mr. Black?"

"Um, is there any chance we can pick our own names?" Sirius asked.

"No you certainly may not," McGonagall scowled. "As well, Mr. Black you will be going by the name Waldrus Wigglethorn."

"Waldrus Wigglethorn?" Sirius repeated, the name rolled off his tongue like a bad taste.

"Excellent, you've already begun memorizing the name," McGonagall said, her neck twisting to look at Peter, James and Remus. "Mr. Pettigrew you will be Johnathon Townsend, Mr. Potter your name is Allen Hardy, and for you Mr. Lupin you will go by Richard Doyle."

"How come they all get normal names and I get stuck with Walrus Wigglethorn?" Sirius complained while James snorted in amusement. "Bugger off, this isn't funny."

"Firstly it's Waldrus, not Walrus. Secondly, you out of everyone else here is a pureblood wizard, if I were to give you a muggle sounding name and someone were to question you on muggle topics what would you say?" McGonagall countered sternly.

"I'd come up with something." Sirius protested.

"Very well then, what is the purpose of the telephone?" questioned McGonagall.

"Um, I know this give me a second," Sirius said, he closed his eyes and racked through his mind for the answer he was sure he knew. "It's uh... It's um..."

"Incorrect, Mr. Black. What is a plane or give me the name of the current muggle Prime Minister?" McGonagall pressed, Sirius' blank face was all she needed to know she had proved her point. "Thank you, _Mr. Wigglethorn_, that will be all."

Dejected and miserable looking, Sirius fell into the chair next to Remus with his arms crossed over his chest. Across from the seemingly lost teens, Albus Dumbledore smiled as he clapped his hands together.

"Well then since we seem to have come to an understanding of things, I shall take my leave," Dumbledore said, he gave a small tilt of a nod to the five time travellers before looking to Professor McGonagall. "Now I dare say these students must be getting some sleep, I believe they will find suitable arrangements in your capable hands, Minerva."

"I'll make quick work of transfiguring a few beds for them tonight, it will be a tight fit in the Seventh Year boys dormitory with these new additions, but I'm sure I'll make it all fit. Miss. Evans if you'll come up as well I'll transfigure you a bed in the girls dorms once I've finished preparing room for the gentlemen here." McGonagall said, she ushered them to their feet and towards the stairs of the Gryffindor dormitories.

While the five were set up in their beds in reasonable time, every person of the time travelling group slept restlessly. Waking up the next morning to the confused and puzzled expression of other seventh year Gryffindor's, the Marauders and Lily had given their best rushed explanations before barging down to the common room to meet up and head down to the Great Hall for breakfast. Shuffling down the open aisle that split the different house tables in the Great Hall, the Marauder's and Lily found an open stretch of seats along the far end of the Gryffindor table.

"You know, I honestly thought us being here would cause a big commotion, but it doesn't seem like anybody even notices, minus the other lads of this year or our current year I suppose?" Sirius said as he plopped down on the table bench beside Peter.

"We'd be long gone from Hogwarts, Sirius, what makes you think any of these students would know who we are?" James asked as he poured himself a glass of pumpkin juice and held it out in offering to Remus.

"Thanks," said Remus while taking the jug from James. His eyes looked down the table then to Sirius and James. "Sirius, whether unintentionally or intentionally makes a point."

"He does?" asked James at the same time Sirius responded, "I do?"

"I may be wrong, but I think James might have some future relative down there among the first years, judging simply on physical similarities." Remus said lightly, the sweet liquid from the jug filling his cup.

"Relative?" James repeated dumbly, he leaned forward and peered down at the first year section of the table, his eyes drifted aimlessly until settling on an all to familiar face. His own. "Blimey!"

"Couldn't have said it better myself, Prongs," Sirius mumbled as he stared at the young first year. "You didn't happen to take a timeturner travel in our first year without telling me, did you?"

James looked at Sirius, resisting the urge to reach over and swipe the back of his friends head. "That's not me, although I have to say I'm interested now as to who he is."

"Have you forgotten what the Headmaster said last night already, we're to try and be discreet." Cut in Lily, a half eaten sausage pierced through the sharp prongs of her fork.

"We are being discreet, it's not as though we're hollering down the table at the bloke," James protested, never the less he pulled himself from his leaning position over the table to sit back down along the bench.

"You might as well be if you keep staring at them," Lily chastised as Sirius continued looking down at James' doppelganger.

Placing his hand on Sirius' face, James pushed his friends head back so he couldn't stare any longer. "Better?"

"Much better," Lily hummed.

"You don't have any siblings, do you James?" asked Peter from James' side, his face scrunched up as if every muscle in his body was being used to rack through his memory.

"Nope, single child," James drawled, he couldn't remember how many times over the course of his Hogwarts years he had told Pettigrew this. "Just me, myself, and I."

"Then it can't be a nephew I suppose." Peter mused, his face scrunching up again,

"Pete', stop before you hurt yourself with all that thinking," Sirius commented, the chuckle that followed was full of mirth. "How about I take a stroll down there and ask a few minor questions?"

"NO!" Lily snapped immediately, her cheeks round and pushed out to the side with the food she was just beginning to gnaw at.

Cupping his ear with one hand, Sirius pretended to fain deafness while getting to his feet.

Remus cocked his head over his shoulder as Sirius stood, with some sensibility he threw his hand back to try and catch Sirius' school robe to try and stop his friend from approaching the first year at the other end of the table.

"Easy there, Moony," Sirius commented, his hands straightening his robes a good foot away from Remus' flailing hand. "I'll be back shortly."

"Sirius..." began James, however his own interest in the similar looking first year won out and he didn't bother trying to persuade his best mate of his intentions.

Strolling nonchalantly down the causeway between the house tables, Sirius made his trek down the stretch of the Great Hall, each step taking him closer towards the first year section. Stopping briefly where the lad who looked eerily like James sat, he took a seat.

With three different pair of eyes looking at him like he was an image that walked right out of a Hogwarts portrait and into life, Sirius' mustered what could be described as a sly grin. "Morning."

"Good morning," awkwardly mumbled the young red head beside him.

"How are you lot doing today?" Sirius asked, looking for small talk.

"We're just fine, and you are?" asked the bushy haired girl across from him, her know-it-all tone oddly reminding him of Lily Evans.

"I am... I'm Paddy?" ventured Sirius, the name he had been given the night before didn't seem to come to memory and the quickest name he could provide was one derived from Padfoot.

"Patty, as in Patrick?" enquired the bushy girl, clearly mistaking the pronunciation of the name.

"Uhm, yes... Patrick Redson?" Sirius answered slowly, doing his best to seem casual he mashed the Gryffindor House colour of crimson red into a surname.

"I'm Hermione Granger, it's a pleasure to meet you," said the girl, her tiny hand springing out for him to take.

"Likewise," Sirius mumbled, he shook Hermione's hand then turned to look at the red head beside him and James' younger look-a-like beside the girl. "And you two are?"

"Ronald Weasley, but you can call me Ron'," the red haired boy replied, a grin stretched across his face while directing a hand at the dark haired boy who looked like James. "And that's, well you know who he is."

"Am I supposed to?" Sirius asked, one of his brows jumped up in an arch with puzzlement.

The red haired boy named Ron' snorted. "Unless you've been living as a muggle your entire life, he's Harry Potter he is!"

"Harry _Potter_?" Sirius mumbled, the boys surname matched James' and immediately he became more tuned and interested. "Nice to meet you there, Harry."

The dark haired boy with oval spectacles gave a slight nod before seemingly trying to avoid Sirius' presence near him and his friends.

"Not much of a talker, eh, so you three are all mates then?" Sirius asked, looking to keep the conversation going in hopes of learning more about the bloke named Harry.

The Weasley kid scrunched his face as he looked across to Hermione before shaking his head. "Me and Harry are mates... She just kind of hangs around I suppose."

"I do not just '_kind of hang around_', unfortunately this morning there were no other free seats to take." Hermione defended, her eyes narrowed at Ron'.

Ron' rolled his eyes and grabbed a piece of bacon from his plate. "No need to be so touchy, it's not like anyone forced you to sit there."

Sirius suppressed the urge to laugh as he watched the two first years, oddly enough they reminded him of the feuding arguments Lily and James could be often found having at times.

"I'm sorry, is this amusing to you?" Hermione questioned, her face etched with irritation as she focused on Sirius.

"No, of course not," Sirius said in haste. "I was just thinking that you both reminded me of some people I know... Mind if I ask you all a question?"

"Which is?" Hermione asked, choosing to ignore Ron' who had begun mock mimicking her.

"Ronald there said I should know who Harry was, forgive me but I've been a bit disconnected with current events and that... Why should I know who Harry is?" Sirius asked.

"Current events?" Hermione said slowly. "Harry didn't become the most famous wizard of all time recently."

"Don't call me famous, I didn't do anything," grumbled Harry who had been picking away at the pile of scrambled eggs on his plate cocked his head in Sirius' direction.

"He's just being modest, Harry defeated a very dark wizard when he was just a baby," Hermione carried on, unabashed by Harry's displeasure of being talked about in front of him.

"He didn't defeat just _any_ dark wizard, he defeated you-know-who," Ron' clarified, his voice lowering to a barely audible whisper when saying the dark wizards name.

"You-know-who?" Sirius asked confused.

Ron' clearly looked surprised. "You know, He-who-must-not-be-named."

With the three first years staring at him as if he was bonkers, Sirius bobbed his head up and down. "Yeah I know, his uh name was on the tip of my tongue... Just slipped my mind I guess."

Ron' shrugged and turned back to his breakfast while Harry and Hermione's gaze lingered on Sirius a bit longer.

"Well I better get on back to my mates, I'm glad to have met you all," Sirius rushed out as he got up from his seat. "Have a good day."

"You too." replied Hermione as she watched the older dark haired teen walk down to the end of the table where she noticed his '_mates_' were all peering fixedly down at them from where they sat along the Gryffindor House table.

"Who was that?" Harry asked aloud once Sirius was gone.

"Some older boy from another year, he said his name was Patrick Redson. I don't recall seeing him around before though." Hermione answered.

Ron' smirked as he took a drink from his goblet of pumpkin juice. "You hear that Harry, the know-it-all thinks she knows every student in all of Hogwarts in under a week."

"That isn't what I'm saying, I just don't remember seeing him around the common room before," Hermione scowled, scrambling to her feet she collected a stack of textbooks and leaned in-towards Harry and Ron. "Also, charms class starts in fifteen minutes if you both don't want to be late I suggest you get going as well."

Ron and Harry briefly watched Hermione storm off before gathering their things themselves, on their way out of the Great Hall, Harry stopped at the entryway and threw a look to where the Patrick Redson bloke had taken a seat with his friends. Shifting on his feet he followed Ron as his friend grabbed his arm and hauled him out of the hall.

"So, what did you find out?" James asked once Sirius had retaken his seat at the table.

Running a hand through his curly locks, Sirius gave a shrug. "Um, I guess I found out he's bloody famous."

"Famous?" said James, a smile breaking out onto his face. "I've got a famous ten year old son?"

"Well yes he's famous, but I didn't quite find out if he's your son or not." Sirius replied hesitantly.

"What? How did you not find out if he's my son or not, you were down there for like a half hour!" James complained, he slapped a hand to his forehead with a heaved disappointed sigh.

"I may have gotten a bit off track, it's not as easy as it seems just going out of the blue and asking a complete stranger questions about themselves... You should have seen the way they looked at me when I told them I didn't know who the Harry kid was, it was like they thought I was mad." Sirius explained, reaching over to Remus' plate he grabbed a slice of toast.

"Sure go ahead, I wasn't planning on eating that anyways." Remus muttered to himself as he watched Sirius bite in.

"So, his name is Harry?" James asked.

"Oh right I nearly forgot, yeah his name is Harry Potter," Sirius answered, his mouth full of chewed bread. "Same surname as yours Prongs, that's good a chance as any that he could be your boy."

Peter Pettigrew held up his stubby hands as if to silence them. "Hold on, you said he was famous... Famous for what?"

"They said he defeated some dark wizard when he was younger," Sirius answered.

"Potter's son defeated a dark wizard as a child, are you positive you heard them correctly, Black?" Lily asked, she couldn't help but think the son of James Potter was destined for less.

"Oi, just cause he's my son doesn't mean he isn't capable of doing great things." James defended.

Remus pinched the bridge of his nose before interrupting them all. "We don't know if this Harry Potter bloke is James son just yet, so let's not get carried away. Believe it or not, it is possible to have the same surname and not be closely related at all."

"Hush Remus, let's get back to the Harry boy and why he's famous, who did he defeat?" Peter wondered.

"Good question, Wormtail, however this is where everything starts to get confusing," Sirius said, his face showing his troubles with figuring how to try and make sense of what the bushy haired first year girl and the Weasley kid told him. "From what I gather he beat some bugger who-can't-be-named."

"Who can't be named?" Peter questioned.

"Erm... You-know-who..." Sirius tried again, he could see he only helped to further the others confusion.

James appeared stumped. "We know who... _Huh?_"

"You-know-who is he-who-must-not-be-named, I know it's confusing but come on do none of you seriously get what I mean?" Sirius grumbled in frustration.

"Just so I'm understanding this correctly, the wizard the Harry boy defeated doesn't have a name or for some reason has a name but he can't be named?" Lily ventured a guess.

"There we go, shame that it's Evans who gets what I'm trying to say but I'll take it." Sirius exclaimed in relief.

"Just so we're clear, Black and this goes for all you for that matter," Lily said, she looked the other four over so to ensure they were made clear she was addressing them all. "Interacting with the boy who possibly could be Potter's son is clearly disobeying the Headmaster's request for us to be discreet, as well it could ruin our cover here. So as stupid as your stunt there was, I hope we can all just keep to being unnoticed for the remainder of the time we're here until we can return to our time."

"Easy there, Evans we're just curious is all. Come on, you have to be a weensy bit interested as to what happens to you in the future?" James asked.

Getting up to a standing position, Lily gathered her school supplies for her first class. "I would much prefer letting the future unfold with times progression, not going ahead in time and finding out what happens before it does. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a potions class _we_ must be getting to."

"What's the rush, it's not like Slughorn is gonna be ticked off with your tardiness when you're apart of his little favorites club," James said, picking up his potions textbook he read the title and passed it over for Peter to carry for him. "I suppose we do have _second_ first impressions to make, let's go lads."

* * *

_A/N:_ I never surrender on writing these stories! I know, long overdue to those who read the first two chapters and I apologize immensely for keeping you waiting. The next chapter is well on it's way to being completed and I promise to have it out within the next few days, not months, I swear! Writer's honor? Anywho, thank you all and I hope to hear any good or bad feedback, it is nice to know someone out there reads this I suppose lol.


	4. The Past Comes Forward

_**THE ETERNITY of TIME**_

**Chapter Four** "_The Past Comes Forward_"

DISCLAIMER: The characters and story plot of the Harry Potter franchise do NOT belong to me, I am just one of the many privileged enough to write on J.K Rowling's marvellous novel series.

* * *

Having made the trek from the Great Hall to the dingy, dark dungeons of Hogwarts, the Marauder's and Lily filed into the all to familiar potions classroom and took the last open seats available. As Professor Slughorn wasn't to be found, the five time travellers began to converse among themselves in hushed tones about the visible changes to the decor of the classroom. Gone was Horace Slughorn's unique decorations and prized photo's of past pupils and in their stead lay a more bare, and uninviting classroom.

"Where in the bloody world is Professor Slug?" grumbled James impatiently.

Sirius shrugged with a yawn. "Who cares, maybe it's a free period now."

"If only we were that lucky, I've got a feeling time hasn't treated Slughorn well and I'm thinking by this point in time the old codger probably looks just as his name sounds." James replied, he slouched in his chair, closed his eyes and pictured a plump, wrinkling Professor Slughorn sliding like a snail slowly about the castle.

Letting out an amused snort, Peter peered past Sirius towards James with a toothy grin that showed his yellowing teeth. "Sluggy Slughorn!"

"That's a name you think is hysterical?" questioned Sirius, watching unamused as Peter giggled to himself over the nickname he had created.

Quelling his fit of laughter, Peter tried lamely to defend his sense of humour. "It's funny, because... Well he's like a Slug, like Prong's said... And his name... Nevermind."

"Just leave the jokes to those who are funny, Pete'." advised Sirius with a friendly pat to his stout friends shoulder.

"_Johnathon!_" hissed Lily from the far side of the shared counter space they surrounded. "His name is Johnathon, not Peter!"

"Yes yes, my bad. Honest mistake. No need to go turning into a banshee." Sirius commented, his voice showing his annoyance at being corrected.

"A banshee? Really, Black? My voice can go a lot higher than that if you push me," growled Lily.

Shaking his head as he listened to Lily and Sirius, James sat up in his chair with his hand raised up in the air. "There will be no pushing, let's just go ahead and put an end to this before we draw the attention of other students, agreed?"

"Agreed." answered Lily, choosing what she thought to be for the greater good.

"Sirius?" asked James.

"... Agreed, mate." mumbled Sirius.

While the five were caught up in their own conversations, they didn't notice the door to the classroom swing open and the entrance of a pale figure cloaked in coal black robes sweep through the room and make every other student in attendance straighten up in their seat.

With an eerie feeling they were being intensely watched, Remus pulled his nose out from the potions text he had begun consuming only to meet a sight that made his eyes widen in surprise. Lost for words, and unable to draw the attention of his mates, he fumbled dumbly under the counter table until he found someone's thigh and gave it a pat.

"What... Who is that?" blubbered James as he peered beneath the table to his leg, following the hand tapping his thigh to the arm of Remus, his gaze passed over an aged but familiar face staring in his direction. Locking eyes with a pair of dark piercing ones glaring at him and his companions, his mouth dropped. "No way..."

"'_No_' what?" asked Sirius, he heard James' then followed his friends line of sight to where an older Severus Snape stood towering at the front of the class, the older Slytherin's pale complexion making the stern expression on his face standout quite evident. "_Snivellus!_"

With Sirius' being heard loud and clear, if it were at all possible Snape's black eyes turned even darker as he stalked forward and slammed his palms down onto the counter top of the five companions. "I suggest you hold your tongue boy before you lose it, forty points from Gryffindor for insufferable disruption!"

"Sev'?" whispered Lily, dumbstruck and lost for words she stared confused into the older face of her friend.

Ignoring Lily completely, Snape restrained himself enough from lashing out at the Marauder's to return back to the front of the class and regain his composure. "Pull out a piece of parchment and a quill as what I say will not be repeated. It is assumed that all Seventh Year students in this class are capable of a skill-set of potion brewing that others of your age do not possess and will be expected regularly to brew potions that some of even the most experienced potioneers of the wizarding world can not produce. So if you are incompetent or believe you do not possess this ability, please remove yourselves from this class at once."

Most of the Marauder's were still dwindling in the shock of Snape as the current day Potion's professor to listen to his beginning lecture. Peter on the other hand hung on every word and at once slipped from his chair and began gathering his things to leave the class.

"Oi, what're you doing?" asked Sirius when he noticed Peter's frantic motions beside him.

"I'm getting out of here, don't you know who that is?" whispered Peter, his voice shivering n worrisome panic.

"Of course I do, you don't forget a face like Snivelly Snape's ugly mug, now sit your arse down Pete' you aren't going anywhere!" Sirius snapped quietly, he reached over and grabbed a handful of Peter's robes and dragged him close. "No offence, mate. But there's no way you're able to go out into this world unmonitored without blabbering about us and the past."

Scrunched up next to Sirius, Peter bobbed his head and awkwardly retook his seat. Staring down at his lap he wished he could morph into his animagus and shrink away from view.

Sirius observed Peter sit down before turning back to the abnormal image that was the older Severus Snape. All of a sudden Sirius was jolted by the all to curt voice of Lily Evans.

"_Johnathon!_ Call him _Johnathon!_" hissed Lily once again, her eavesdropping on Sirius leading her to state McGonagall's administered names for them.

"Don't you think I heard you before, _Dorothy?!_" Sirius growled in return.

"WIGGLETHORN!" sneered Snape from the front.

Taking a deep breath to try and quell his irritated annoyance at hearing his alternative name, Sirius turned to look at Snape. "_Yes?_"

"Disrupting class again, fifteen points from Gryffindor!" Snape seethed.

Sirius jumped from his chair into a standing position and glared back into the glaring eyes of Snape. "Fifteen points? You just took forty! Why don't you just take all the house points and give Slytherin the house cup already!"

The room went quiet, the other Seventh Year students who had progressed through out the years with Snape teaching Potions had never seen a student such as Sirius speak to Snape like he did, nor did they think a student ever had the courage or audacity to say what a student like Sirius did.

Jaw clenched, Snape blew a heavy breath of hot air through his nostrils before taking a few long strides towards the upright standing Sirius Black. "Very well, Wigglethorn. Twenty-Five points from Gryffindor House and two weeks detention. One more disruption from you boy and I'll have you tossed from my class, take your seat. Do we understand one another, boy?"

Grabbing the hem of Sirius' robe, James gave it a tug. "Give it a rest, Padfoot. You can't win."

Listening to James' whisper, Sirius clenched his teeth and sank down into his chair, his eyes still locked with Snape's. "... Yes, _Sir_."

Lips curling into a snarl, Snape withdrew from their counter and returned to lecturing the class about the importance of potion brewing and it's significance in the magical world.

"Can you believe that git?" asked Sirius quietly to James, his eyes alight with defiant anger.

James shook his head, his mind still racking itself through to try and comprehend Snape's position of power within the Hogwart's faculty. "No, but you've got to let it go, Waldrus. The man's a Professor after-all."

"Oh not you too, come on Prong's you aren't going along with McGonagall and Evans with these fake names are you?" Sirius complained.

"I don't know what you mean by fake names, now shut your trap and listen to Snape before you get into anymore trouble." James answered in a low tone, he turned from Sirius to Lily to see her looking back at him approvingly.

Rolling his eyes, Sirius sat back in his seat. All the while his thoughts revolving how much he hated his friends crush on Evans, how much he hated Snape, and finally how much he wished he was out of this accursed dungeon classroom.

On the other end of the shared counter top sat Remus and Lily, the latter of which sat visibly troubled and confused with the sudden appearance of the friend she had practically grown up with. Sure Snape's personality had gone undeniably unchanged thought Lily, but his face and body had noticeably changed. He had grown from the scared, socially awkward Slytherin in which she knew, into a broad shouldered, confident disciplinarian that stood before her.

Lily was so caught up in her own thoughts and the concept of the current future she didn't realize the passing of time until Severus Snape's sharp voice cut through the air like a knife declaring the end of class.

"Want me to grab your things, Dorothy?" asked Remus kindly as Lily blinked absentmindedly for a moment while collecting her thoughts back into order.

Turning to look at the most reasonable member of the Marauder's, Lily offered a frail smile. "Thank you, Richard, but I'll be fine. You and the others can go on without me, I'll catch up."

"You sure?" asked Remus once more, his hand pulling the strap of his book-bag over his shoulder.

"I'm sure, you go ahead." reassured Lily, she scooted out from her seat at the counter and nervously approached the aged Snape who was consumed by the organization of random scrap pieces of parchment scattered over-top his desk.

Legs wobbling with each step she took in nervous uncertainty towards Snape, Lily was drawn back to the others by a firm but tender hand wrapping around her forearm.

"What are you doing?" questioned James softly, his hand on Lily's arm as the rest of his entourage lingered near the doorway of the potions classroom. "Rem- Moony said you told us to go on ahead without you... Don't you remember what Dumbledore said, what _you_ said about being discreet?"

"While I appreciate your concern, Potter. I find it highly unlikely Severus was not able discern after that fiasco with Wigglethorn who we really are, that is if he doesn't know already, so being discreet won't be an issue. Now if you'll please unhand me." replied Lily, her voice tamed as she waited for James to release her arm.

Loosening his grasp on the girl who consumed almost every waking thought he had, James nodded and stepped back. "We'll be waiting just outside... Don't take to long."

"You really don't have to do that, James." said Lily, but James was already shaking his head to and fro.

"We'll be right outside," stated James again, he cast one more glance at Snape before leaving the classroom, every other step he took, he threw a look over his shoulder to watch Lily before disappearing out the door.

Finding herself completely alone in the classroom with Snape, Lily shifted from foot to foot waiting for Severus to acknowledge her. However, when it seemed that the dark haired wizard before her had no intention of engaging her she reached forward and placed a hand over the Potion Professor's.

Silence. Snape looked up from the mess that lay upon his desk momentarily to look into Lily's emerald green eyes, the next motion he did was pull Lily's hand from his own. "Class is out of session, you're excused Miss. Milburn. I've another class to teach shortly."

"Severus... It's me, don't you recognize me?" Lily asked, perhaps mistaking the situation and thinking her old friend knew more than he actually did.

"... I see you quite clearly, Miss. Milburn," acknowledged Snape, in a frigid motion that would make a statue look more flexible he stood and stalked towards the supply cupboard tucked away in the corner of the classroom. "And as I said before, quite clearly may I add, you're excused."

Lily stood stunned, the muscles of her face fell into a horribly shocked expression. After a few moments of unrelenting silence, she slowly turned on the heels of her feet and dazedly shuffled her way out of the gloomy potions classroom.

Casting one last look of pondering curiosity to Snape, Lily Evans exited the classroom only to have a small bushy haired girl run straight square into her.

"Oooh! I'm sorry!" exclaimed Hermione at once, she took a few unbalanced steps away from Lily with a nervous smile that showed almost all the young girls insecurities for what they were.

"It's fine," assured Lily absently, she usually would have given a pointer or two to the young girl who'd bumped into her, however she was far to preoccupied by her own thoughts she merely ushered the young bushy haired girl forward into Snape's classroom with a gentle hand.

Noticing Lily's distant and absent appearance, James Potter took a tentative step towards the girl of his fancy once the young bushy haired girl had entered into Snape's class. "Lily, is everything alright? I knew you should have come with us the second that big nosed git showed his fa-"

Of course James was cut short by the sharp slap of Lily's hand on his cheek, her eyes narrowed with new purpose at James. "'Despite what you might believe Potter, you and I are not friends nor do we have any connection to one another besides the fact that we're Head Boy and Girl. Now, as I'm sure while you all are unconcerned, we do have another class to attend to."

"Ah, you said Potter!" called Sirius with a grin, pleased to have finally caught Evans slip up. "Come on then, berate yourself."

Eyes narrowing into slits at Sirius, Lily pushed past James and the rest of the Maruader's on her way towards the stairway leading out of the dungeons.

"Bleeding hypocrite she is," Sirius commented with a flourished roll of his eyes.

"Enough Padfoot, let her be," growled James' as he followed after Lily. Her words _'nor do we have any connection'_ ringing over and over again in his head.

With the three other Marauder's left standing in the wake of Lily and James, Sirius threw his hands in the air as if to surrender to some unknown presence.

"I don't get it, I just don't get it, what in Merlin's beard has him all riled up?" questioned Sirius frustrated.

"You mean other than the fact that we're not in our timeline?" asked Remus' as he placed a hand on Sirius' shoulder. "Tough love I'd guess."

"Tough love?" repeated Sirius puzzled.

"There's more being with a girl than just snogging, Padfoot, I have the utmost faith that one day you'll understand that," added Remus as he set off to follow after James and Lily.

Watching Remus walk away for a moment, Sirius shook his head just as Peter Pettigrew came to stand at his side. "Does anybody talk in anything other than vague sentences anymore?"

"What can I say, Padfoot, the man's right when he's right, it's all tough love." Peter commented in a matter of fact tone of voice.

Cocking his head to the side to look down at his pudgy friend, Sirius' mouth twitched into a grin as he threw an arm around Peter and lead him after their friends. "You know, Pete' you're exactly right in not knowing anything at all, I have to admit I like your confidence though. It's always comforting to know ones not alone."

"... Did you just insult me?" asked Peter.

Sirius' laugh could be heard echoing against the cobblestone walls as they disappeared up the dungeon stairway to a bustling corridor filled with other students of all ages, the two friends smiled as they watched a combination of chatter and a small degree of pushing and shoving between the Hogwarts student body as they rushed to their next classes, alarmingly however Sirius and Peter found none of their other companions in sight.

"Perfect, where did they get off to now?" asked Sirius with sarcasm dripping from every word, straining his neck he did his best to try and peer over the mass of bobbing heads.

"What does it matter, we're all going to our next class we'll just meet them their." Peter said as he side stepped a first or second year who had their head buried in their textbooks.

With a heavy huff, Sirius turned to Peter with a shake of his head. "You know what, you've got it all figured out Wormtail, go on then, what's our next class?"

Peter's face seemed to freeze. "You don't know?"

"Of course I don't know, when in all the years that we've been going to Hogwarts have I ever known what class we have next!?"

Grabbing a tuft of his hair in each hand, Peter appeared flabbergasted. "What do we do?"

"I can't believe I'm going to say this but... Find a Professor and ask?" offered Sirius.

Peter nodded hastily up and down in agreement. His beady eyes then darted from Sirius to scan the crowd for an adult in which to ask, however what caught his attention instead was the distracted focus of many other students who seemed fixated on a young boy with a mop of black hair accompanied by a redhead.

Feeling a tug on the sleeve of his dress shirt, Sirius yanked his arm from Peter's grip. "What?"

"It's him, it's James... James' kid... Or relative... Or, well you know," replied Peter, he slowly gravitated away from Sirius towards the young James Potter look-a-like who was close to passing them by.

Snatching the scruff of Peter's robes, Sirius yanked his smaller friend back to his side. "Easy there Pete', where do you think you're going?"

"Me?" Peter asked dazed. "Look at them all, Sirius, they're watching him... Admiring him."

"Yes, I can see that from here, no need to get any closer to figure that out," replied Sirius, his gaze drifted over Peter as he held his friend back and as if by luck or even by chance a crumpled piece of parchment containing their timetable for classes protruded halfway out of Pettigrew's bookbag. "You twit!"

"Huh?" mumbled Peter as he felt Sirius rummaging around behind him in his bag,

"You have a timetable on you," said Sirius exasperated, pulling the folded piece of parchment from his friends bag he flicked it jokingly against Peter's forehead before unfolding it to take a look at what their next class was. "... Ah, Divination... Sixth Floor, problem solved. Come on Pete'."

Snapping out of whatever daze he had, Peter shuffled after Sirius into the bustling crowd, the farther they traversed the more the two Marauder's took notice of the other students dwindling in number as they disappeared into their classes. By the time Sirius and Peter reached the moving staircases the corridors were bare empty making it all to clear to them that they were late for their own class.

"Merlin, forget it, Padfoot, we're not going to make it before class ends," exclaimed an exhausted Peter, his breathing laboured as he stared up at the constantly turning stairs.

"Don't give up on me yet, Pete', If I remember correctly I think there's a shortcut on the third floor," said Sirius.

"Thinking isn't knowing," defended Peter who seemed all but content to sit where he stood.

"Thinking isn't knowing," Sirius conceded as he twisted to look at his fellow Marauder. "However, not trying is still not trying now let's go, mate."

Grumbling a few mumbled curse words under his breath, Peter clambered up the first set of moving staircases in cold pursuit of Sirius. A look of relief crossed both their faces as the pair glided gently on a moving stairway to the third floor, stepping off into what appeared to be a seemingly abandoned Hogwarts floor, Sirius took a hesitant step forward.

"Hmm," Sirius mused, his eyes went from left to right as if surveying. "I might have things mixed around, maybe it's the fourth floor that has the shortcut... Merlin, if we still had the Marauder's map we wouldn't have all this bloody confusion!"

Peter opened his mouth to chastise but Sirius' hand clasped over it before he could speak, a soft thud of a door being shut up ahead had a startled Sirius hauling Peter behind cobwebbed suit of armour along the floor's long stretching corridor.

"Don't say a word," hissed Sirius into Peter's ear, having already lost 80 points to Snivellus Snape he wasn't looking to have anymore taken away from Gryffindor House.

In the silence of the shadows that they hid in, the Seventh Year boys remained frigid and stoic as a thin man staggered by, one hand clenched to the temple of his forehead as the other clasped the top of a turban he wore.

"Too dangerous, Master... W-w-we must wait for th-the opportune m-m-moment to get by th-that beast," stuttered the unknown man to himself, Sirius and Peter shared a perplexed look between one another as the man then seemed to cower in response from a reply to himself as he hastily chattered on. "They'll s-s-suspect us, m-my lord, we m-mustn't."

Sharing a look among each other in what could best be described as perplexed, Sirius nudged Peter to make a dash a little further down the hall to another old set of armour further away from the rambling man, as they rushed down the corridor a clumsy Peter Pettigrew tripped upon his own feet and if it were not for Sirius being their to catch him he'd have landed face first upon the cold stone floor, the noise from the stumble still drew the attention from the stuttering man who spun around to find nothing but an empty corridor as Sirius and Peter managed to cluster together in a crook behind the suit of armour.

"Rat perhaps?" offered the pale man to himself as an excuse, his eyes roamed the corridor for a moment before swooshing about and setting quickly off onto the same staircase Peter and Sirius had arrived on.

Once the staircase departed with the man on it, Sirius and Peter breathed a breath of relief as they stepped out from behind the armour, both teens looked at one another and shed a grin.

"That was a close one," Sirius said, a chuckle of mirth filling out from him. "Feels good to be living on the edge again."

"For you sure, not so much for me," said Peter even though a lopsided smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "Where to now?"

"To class... No more shortcuts though, we're late as it is I doubt it'll make much difference if we go the regular route," answered Sirius, he tentatively peered out in the rotating staircase to make sure their recent visitor was out of sight. "Looks clear, come on."

Despite being late for divination, the two wizards eagerly looked forward to sharing their tale of dodging the stuttering man and what could potentially be an adventure of exploring the castles third floor to find whatever 'beast' the unidentified man was mumbling about to himself.

* * *

A/N: Another quick chapter is released, that's pretty good right? The next one will be out in a bit, but I shall work diligently to get it finish in faster fashion than I have done previously before. Thank you all for reading and please drop a review to let me know if the story is good or not, either good or bad, all feedback is welcome. Take care, and until next time, RefreshinglyNEW out! *Mic Drop*


	5. A Learned Past

_**THE ETERNITY of TIME**_

**Chapter Five** "_A Learned Past_"

DISCLAIMER: The characters and story plot of the Harry Potter franchise do NOT belong to me, I am just one of the many privileged enough to write on J.K Rowling's marvellous novel series.

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"She's barmy, the woman is seriously barmy," joked James as he, Lily and his fellow Marauder's walked out of the Divination classroom. "Professor Trelawney, more like Professor _Tre-Loony_."

"I thought she was quite insightful," mused Peter aloud, he had kept a pinch of tea leafs in his palm that he couldn't help but continue to stare at as he walked. "Do you think I can tell the future with these?"

Remus laughed as he passed Peter by. "You're living in the future, Johnathon, look around you."

As Peter didn't immediately acknowledge what Remus said, James leaned into his stout friend and whispered close to his ear. "You're _Johnathon_, Pete'."

"Oh, right," Peter said, cluing in to McGonagall's name for him.

"So those leafs in your hand there, they're actually as useless as they actually are," James told Peter, a sly smirk stretching it's way across his face.

Peter gave a nod as he wiped his tea leafed palm along his trousers and a red tinge of embarrassment filling up the plump cheeks of his face as he realized how thick he must seem to his friends to think that tea leafs could tell the future he was currently living in.

As the Marauder's joked and laughed their way towards their next class, James Potter stopped short as he realized Lily Evans was dragging her feet several steps behind. Despite Lily making it quite clear just what kind of relationship he and her had this morning, James also knew how perplexing and troublesome it must be for her to have seen the older Severus Snape and be treated so coldly by someone who James grudgingly had to acknowledge was one of Lily's bestfriends back in their time line.

Waiting until she was just a few steps from him, James closed the gap so he was walking beside her, a moment of silence ensued between the two until James cleared his throat.

"Is there something I can do for you, _Hardy_?" Lily asked, she may have been lost within her thoughts but she still had a grasp to not be completely oblivious to her surroundings.

"No, nothing at all," rushed out James, a flowery scent of what he assumed was perfume wafted over from Lily and he felt his collar tighten around his neck with giddy nerves. "Um, is there anything I can do for you, I know it's been a ruddy day for you and all that."

"And all that?" questioned Lily.

James reached up behind his head and gave it a scratch. "Well you know, with how potions went this morning, I just figured you might want to talk about it?"

Lily pondered hard, sharing her thoughts and emotions with the likes of James Potter had never entered her mind before, however now that they had been thrust from the comforts of their own timeline, the selection of confidantes she once had was narrowed down to an exact nil.

"Evans?" asked James when he heard nothing.

"Milburn, Dorothy Milburn," Lily replied quickly.

James brows furrowed together as he looked over his shoulders to the near empty corridor they found themselves traversing through. "No one's even around us, are the aliases all that necessary?"

"Pretense is everything, it's best we keep using the names so we get into a habit of using them," Lily defended surely. "One slip up and who knows what kind of effect we might cause to the timeline."

"We really don't know anything about how us being here works, it may have no effect at all," replied James, just for good measure to show he was listening he added. "_Milburn_."

Lily let a half smile grace her mouth for a moment. "I can't argue with that."

James felt his heart skip a beat as he saw her smile. "So now that we have a free period, what do you say to grabbing some food with me in the Great Hall?"

Something in side of Lily wanted to say yes but another part of her was torn to try and figure out just why Severus had paid her no mind earlier, were they no longer friends in the future? Did her oldest friend really no recognize her? Pushing the questions aside, Lily came to a halt and met James eye to eye.

Having stopped when Lily did, James could feel feel his heart start to pick up pace as he awaited her reply.

Opening her mouth to finally accept Potter's offer, Lily was silenced by a loud roar from up ahead.

"Oi, Prong's what're you doing mate!? Come on, move those hoofs!" called Sirius, the dark curly haired teen waved his hand in the air gesturing for James to join him, Peter and Remus.

Ignoring the urge to give a rather obscene hand gesture back to Sirius for interrupting him, James looked to Lily expectantly. "Well, Lily will you join me?"

Lily bowed her head for a moment as she tucked a few loose strands of auburn hair behind her ear. "Not today, I think I may wander the grounds for a little bit to clear my head."

Even though he was dejected by her answer James did his best not to show it. "Another day then?"

"Prong's you old goblin, get your arse over here!" cut in a yelling Sirius once again.

Hesitantly, Lily nodded. "Sure, Potter, another day."

Despite the turn down, James grinned as she used his actual surname. "Perfect, I'll catch you later then."

With a simple nod, Lily watched as James jogged off to rejoin his friends near the end of the corridor before turning to walk a different route she knew would lead her out onto the grounds of Hogwarts castle. As the began her stroll, Lily took notice as other students began to empty out of their classes and head off towards their next. The bustling student body gave comfort to Lily to know that even though she was lost to a different era of time, some things never seemed to change.

Letting her mind drift back to Snape, Lily did an estimated calculation based off the age Snape looked to how old she would be in this time, the thought of an older version of herself running about the wizarding world the same time she her 17 year old self was walking about Hogwarts gave her a strange sense of bewilderment if she and her older self where to ever meet by chance. What could she possibly say or ask her future self?

So lost in the trance of her own mind Lily didn't take immediate notice she was not treading along neatly cut grass outside the confines of Hogwarts grand stone walls. Searching around her to identify just where her legs had lead her, Lily spotted what appeared to be a group of first years preparing to have their first flying lesson.

Taking a seat on an old stone bench beneath the shade of a thick trunked tree that had probably planted it's roots in the earth century's ago, Lily observed the first years begin to struggle with the command to have their brooms leap up from the ground and into their hands.

In the distance she could make out the shaggy black hair of James Potter's look-a-like son, the lesson appeared to be going quite well in Lily's opinion until a rather pudgy boy after mounting his broom started to lift up off the ground to the panic and dismay of the teaching Professor and other students.

Holding a hand to her mouth in near horror, Lily watched as the pudgy boy now a fair height up from the rest of his swayed uncontrollably on his broom, teetering from side to side, Lily closed her eyes as the boy lost his grip on his broom and toppled over. Opening her eyes a second later, Lily watched as the boy whimpered and whined on the ground, one hand clutching the wrist of his other.

Lily was tempted to go over and offer her assistance but the flying instructor was already hurrying over to check the pudgy boy over, the spiky grey haired witch then appeared to give the rest of the class some stern instructions before ushering the pudgy boy towards the nearest Hogwarts entrance.

Figuring the excitement was over Lily was set on returning to her thoughts until witnessing a blonde haired boy in Slytherin drab get into a verbal row with James Potter's potential offspring. Instinctively Lily's years as a prefect kicked in and she got up from the stone bench fully intent on intervening between the two boys, however just as she neared them the slick backed blonde boy kicked off from the ground with Potter's look-a-like following close after.

"Both of you get back down here right now!" shouted Lily in her sternest of tones.

Both boys seemed to completely disregard her as they continued their verbal altercation once Potter's boy had caught up to the Slytherin students, Lily knowing it was fruitless to keep yelling turned to look around her at the whispering Slytherin and Gryffindor first years that stood gazing intently up at the two boys, Lily felt powerless but to do the same. There was a churn in her stomach as the blonde boy then threw a round object that Potter's boy chased after.

The sickly churning sensation in Lily's stomach didn't seem to subside as Potter's look-a-like entered into a dangerously narrow dive towards the ground, within a matter of a feet from becoming well aquainted with the grounds of Hogwarts the boy did a sharp sweep to catch the round object and come to a skidding stop back to land.

As a crowd of cheering first year Gryffindor's ran towards the boy, Lily followed after in a stalking walk sure to let the boy hear of the reckless, life threatening dangers he had just partaken in.

"Stop that cheering at once," ordered Lily to the assembled Gryffindor's who were taking turns clapping and patting the Potter boy on the back. "Do you have any idea of how dangerous that was!?"

Cranking their necks to look at the fuming older student before them, most of the Gryffindor's choose to take a step away leaving a semi-circle around the Potter boy and a red haired kid she assumed was one of his closer mates.

"I didn't do anything wrong, it was Malfoy who took Neville's remembrall," defended the Potter boy, the now identifiable remembrall clasped tightly in his hand.

"That is besides the point, what you just did not only endangered yourself but your fellow classmates as well, you should think before you act! What would your parents say?" Lily chastised.

After the words left her mouth, Lily was met with several confused looks from the Gryffindor first years before her.

"You do know that's Harry Potter, don't you?" asked a girl whose identical twin who stood beside her nodding.

"Since when did fame exempt someone from hard truths," countered Lily, she figured the girl needed to point out Potter's name as some form of connection to his victory over an unnamed dark wizard.

Lily turned her eyes back onto the Potter boy to watch him drop his head to stare at the ground. Unsure if the boy was remorseful or just choosing to ignore her chastising, Lily prepared to unleash more words of wisdom upon the boy but a tug on the sleeve of her robes had her looking down to the bushy haired girl who had ran into her that very morning outside of Snape's classroom.

"Harry's parents are dead," whispered the bushy haired girl informatively.

"Dead?" scoffed Lily unexpectedly, James Potter was dead? No, that couldn't be she told herself, it wasn't even confirmed yet that James was in fact the boys father. "... What were their names?"

"Lily and James," answered Harry, his head was raised and looking quite fixed on Lily now.

Lily could feel the saliva in her mouth disappear as she met Harry's eyes, she needn't ask his mother's maiden name to know the answer as she founded herself looking into a pair of eyes she knew all to well, her own.

"Merlin," mumbled Lily, her body stood frozen in a state of shock as she continued to stare at Harry Potter, her son. "This... That... I, um."

"Are you alright, miss?" questioned the bushy haired girl, her voice and face filled with genuine concern. "I can fetch Madam Pomfrey."

Lily could only manage to wave the offer off as her voice seemed to have upped and left her voice-box. Thankfully for Lily she was saved from the situation at hand by Professor McGonagall storming out of the castle towards them.

"Mr. Potter, come with me please," order McGonagall as she drew close to the bundle of Gryffindor's. Her eyes passed over Lily and she had to do a double take of the Seventh Year girl just to ensure it wasn't one of Hogwarts ghosts with how pale Lily had become. "Miss. Milburn?"

Twisting her neck to look at McGonagall, Lily tried to answer her Head of House but found the words got tangled around her tongue.

Unable to decipher the garbled sentence that had left the usually eloquent Lily Evans, McGonagall knew then that the girl must have learned something quite distressing. "Miss. Milburn, if you would come with me as well, please."

Bobbing her head up and down to show she understood the transfiguration Professor, Lily while weak in the knees joined McGonagall at her side.

"Now, I expect all of you to remain here where you are until, Madam Hooch returns. If I hear so much as a whisper of trouble caused by any of you I will take points from Gryffindor House faster than you can Quidditch," Instructed McGonagall to the remaining herd of first years in front of her. "I also have no shortage of detentions to hand out as well."

With that said, McGonagall pivoted where she stood and advanced back towards the entrance she had exited from the castle, in tow behind her was a dazed Lily Evans and worried Harry Potter. As the three entered into Hogwarts, McGonagall came to a short stop.

"Mr. Potter, wait here. Miss. Milburn if you would come with me over here for a moment," requested McGonagall leading Lily away from Harry several feet away.

"Professor?" asked Lily slowly.

"I'm not quite certain what it is you may or may not know, Miss. Milburn, but I suggest you go and see the Headmaster, he may have answers you seek. I trust you know where his office is?" said McGonagall.

"Yes, Professor. The gargoyle." Lily answered.

"Excellent, the password is _'Pickled Prunes'_. Now I must be tending to Mr. Potter here so you best be off Miss. Milburn," McGonagall replied, after a moment of Lily not moving she gave a gentle press to the girls back to assist in getting the younger witch's feet moving.

Stumbling her way in a daze towards the Headmaster's office, Lily could hardly believe that just an hour earlier her mind was preoccupied with how Severus had treated her that morning, twisting and turning about the castle's corridors Lily found herself looking up into the face of the gargoyle that guarded Dumbledore's office entrance within a matter of a couple minutes.

Giving the password McGonagall had bequethed upon her, Lily watched and waited as the Headmaster's rotating staircase ascended it's way up. Slowly with uneasy steps she made her way up the coiled stairway that upon reaching the top she tumbled into an open chair across from where a relatively surprised Dumbledore sat at his desk.

"Ah, Miss. Evans, what a pleasant surprise," greeted Dumbledore, the elderly wizard wore a dark burgundy set of robes that highlighted his long grey beard. "For what reason do I owe the pleasure of your company?"

"The boy... James' boy, the Potter boy," Lily managed to get out, her voice faintly quiet.

"I see," Dumbledore commented lightly, "I take it you've finally made the acquaintance of Harry Potter?"

Lily's gaunt face confirmed Dumbledore's question.

"To be quite honest, my dear, I'm surprised it took you this long," Dumbledore said, his voice sounded almost jovial. "He's a fine boy I hope you know."

"Is it true... Is he actually..." Lily began but fell quiet as she mustered the strength to bring herself to finish the sentence. "Is he my son, Professor?"

Reaching a finger up to his long, crooked nose, Dumbledore pushed his spectacles up and gave a nod. "He is."

Lily digested the news with a lump in her throat. "And... I'm dead?"

Dumbledore sighed. "You are."

"How?" gasped Lily.

Eyes downcast for a moment, Dumbledore stood from his chair and strode a short distance towards to a rather majestic looking Phoenix perched upon the ledge of one of the Headmaster's many office bookshelfs. "This is not a tale for the faint of heart, Miss. Evans. I request you think deeply for a moment if you truly wish to know the answer."

While she may have not been interested in what her future fate was a day or two ago, Lily was now keenly in rapt with whatever the Headmaster could potentially tell her. "I do... I have to know."

"Very well, my dear," Dumbledore replied gravely. "In your time, I take it you've heard word of witches and wizards disappearing?"

"The Ministry is investigating, no one knows where they've gone," Lily said.

"There's been whispers of a name in your time, I'm sure you've heard it before, haven't you, Miss. Evans?"

Despite the realizations she had faced today Lily thought back to her timeline and knew exactly what the Headmaster was referring to. "A dark wizard... Voldemort they call him."

"Yes, Voldemort," Dumbledore confirmed gravely. "It is then in your time that he worked in the shadows trying desperately to undermine the Ministry of Magic and the peaceful cohabitation between muggles and magic folk. In just a few short years, Voldemort and his followers will be a very real and present threat that will bring the wizarding world as we know it to the brink of destruction. Voldemort looked to create a new world power based on the ideals of pureblood supremacy and he would have succeeded too if it were not for you, James and your son, Harry."

Shaking her head, Lily brought a hand to rub one of her temples. "This is to much."

"It's a lot to absorb, I know, my dear," commented Dumbledore gently, his hand caressing the smooth feathers of his Phoenix. "While I cannot comfort you in a death you know you will have to face, I hope you can find comfort in the fact that your death helped bring peace to the wizarding world."

Not quite ready to accept her death, Lily shook her head. "It doesn't bring me comfort, nothing you've told me brings me comfort!"

Dumbledore turned from his majestic bird and fixed Lily with a look that showed his sympathy for the girl. "I'm sorry, Lily. But you and the family you make are the founding fixture of peace and security the wizarding world today now has because of the sacrifice you and James made."

"James," whispered Lily, she nearly forgot her future husband was the boy who had been a thorn in her side for nearly the entirety of her time at Hogwarts in her time.

Striding to where Lily sat, Dumbledore took a bended knee and placed a hand atop of Lily's in a gesture of support. "I must trust that you realize you mustn't tell James of this Lily, while he is of good intentions, James Potter is not the sort of wizard to learn something of this nature and retain his composure."

Lily slipped her hand out from under Dumbledore's. "You want me to keep this from him?"

"I only wish you to do what you believe to be right, I cannot forbid you from saying or doing anything, I can merely request you consider what news like this would do to Harry, a boy who has lived his entire life knowing his parents to be deceased," Dumbledore answered, he withdrew his hand back to his side and got slowly back to an upright position.

Lily stared at the man she had always been fond of and nodded. "I'll consider it... To be quite honest, I don't even know what I'd say to Potter... James, I mean..."

"A simple consideration is the most I can expect," replied Dumbledore while retaking the seat behind his desk.

Although Lily was loaded with tons of more questions, the gobsmacked Gryffindor had had enough knowledge of her future to last her what she now knew to be a short lifetime. "If it's fine with you, Headmaster, I'd like to go to Gryffindor Tower."

"Of course, my dear, I'll send word to the Professor's of your other classes excusing you for the day," Dumbledore said. "My office is open to you whenever you should seek council or assistance, Miss. Evans."

"Thank you, sir?" responded Lily unsure.

Even though she had been shake to her core and unknowing of what could possibly transpire while living in the present time, Lily felt unexplainable remorse not for herself but for the idea of a boy who had gone his entire life without knowing the love of his parents.

* * *

A/N: This chapter is a bit all over the place so I apologize before hand if it may be a bit hard to follow, I am going to be quite busy for the next little while and I wanted to get this one out a bit sooner than I planned. Either way, it's a step towards a bigger realization for our time traveller's but still many questions to be answered. Anywho, I hope you all enjoy the chapter and if you have the time drop a review to let me know what you think. Thank you all for reading and I hope you all take care. Until next time dear readers, farewell!


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